What’s the matter with students today? Whatever happened to questioning authority, orthodoxy and received wisdom, organising protests and sit-ins and defying outdated moral standards? Rather than challenging the status quo and fighting for a better world, student activism today seems to go with the grain of an increasingly conformist society. Student unions lead campaigns to sack professors for expressing controversial views, champion safe sex and responsible drinking, and censor the use of offensive language on campus. What hope is there for the idea of universities as places where students should be free to experiment, think, argue, learn, and say what they please?
 | Dr Lee Jones lecturer, international relations, Queen Mary, University of London |
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 | Dr Maria Grasso lecturer in politics and quantitative methods, Department of Politics, University of Sheffield; author: Generations, Political Participation and Social Change in Western Europe |
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 | Suzy Dean freelance writer; blogger, Free Society |
| Dr Maria Grasso lecturer in politics and quantitative methods, Department of Politics, University of Sheffield; author: Generations, Political Participation and Social Change in Western Europe | |
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| Suzy Dean freelance writer; blogger, Free Society | |
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 | recommended by spiked |
